Lubricants are fatty substances which make it possible to reduce friction between two surfaces. They are mainly composed of a basic oil and of additives which give them particular properties. The oils used are generally of mineral, vegetable, animal or synthetic origin, and can be recycled.
Following the depletion of petroleum resources and the appearance of numerous studies demonstrating the negative impact on the environment of the compounds resulting from the petrochemical industry, oils of vegetable or animal origin tend to replace oils of petrochemical origin for applications in many fields, in particular in the lubricant field.
The use of biolubricants has emerged over the past few years (oil of vegetable or animal origin) and, although it is advantageous from an ecological point of view, it still remains marginal (less than 5% of the lubricant market) owing to the very high production costs compared with lubricants of petrochemical origin and the difficulties in supplying vegetable oils requiring large-scale crops (oleaginous crops) often intended for human or animal food.
Nevertheless, the use of these biolubricants proves to be very advantageous, in particular in applications where the recovery of the lubricants is virtually impossible or subject to accidental losses (in soils and water), since their environmental impact is limited and they make it possible to minimize health risks.
Consequently, in a perspective of developing products that are more environmentally friendly, vegetable and animal oils are used in various applications.
The document “Acides gras: nomenclature et sources alimentaires” [“Fatty acids: nomenclature and food sources”], by Cuvier C Cabaraux J.-F., Dufrasne I., Hornick J.-L., Istasse L. Manuscrit Ann. Méd. Vét., 2004, 148, 133-140, describes the fatty acid content of the lipid compositions of various products of animal or vegetable origin: rapeseed oil, corn oil, sunflower oil, olive oil, linseed oil, etc.
Lipid compositions based on triacylglycerols are described in patent application NESTLE OIL OYJ EP 2 390 341, resulting from a process of lipid synthesis by a microorganism. The study relates to the accumulation of TAGs in the cytoplasm by the microorganism.